Lennie writes today:
Thursday, January 13, 1898
Had a party to Cheavers
Staid at Fred Poff.
John Dillon in ???
I think I spelled Cheavers correctly...Lennie's writing was tiny! And those tiny penciled notations were somewhat smudged.
Afterward, Lennie "staid" overnight at Fred Poff's house.
I haven't a clue as to where John Dillon was. Was he "in town"? Was he "in trouble"? We simply do not know. At first I thought Lennie might be referring to that infamous bank robber but I was wrong. That fellow's name was John Herbert Dillinger, not Dillon. And he would not be born yet for another five years. So, no, this was not the bank robber.
The word for today is "staid". Yes, Lennie used this word incorrectly. But it IS a word.
Staid - Adjective
...Marked by settled sedateness and often prim self-restraint.
I don't think anyone could ever call Lennie prim or sedate. Nobody who is out sliding down the hill nearly every day of the week could be called "staid".
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